Cedar Rapids Gazette: Iowa honey production and the value of the crop fell last year from 2017 due to bee-killing insects and inclement weather. Honey production from producers with five or more colonies in Iowa totaled 1.86 million pounds in 2018, down 8% from 2017, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. The state’s 2018 honey crop was valued at $4.38 million, down 5%.